Baked into the White House's long-term budget projections is the assumption that at some point in the not-too-distant future, the economy will come roaring back to life -- at least relatively speaking -- thanks in part to government spending.

But does that mean it's time to buy low? Obama yesterday took what The Washington Post's Neil Irwin calls an "an unusual foray into investment advice."

Here's what the president said: "What you're now seeing is profit and earning ratios are starting to get to the point where buying stocks is a potentially good deal if you've got a long-term perspective on it."

As Irwin writes, this was part of a "concerted push" by the administration "to boost confidence in downward-spiraling financial markets, assuring Americans that officials are taking the steps necessary to contain the worsening economic damage and to restore the nation's long-term fiscal health."